Bears training camp: 3 Most important position battles in Chicago

1. Quarterback – Mitchell Trubisky vs. Nick Foles

This is the battle we’ve all wanted to see. The quarterback is arguably the most important position on the football field. He is the leader of the offense and usually the face of the franchise.

Mitchell Trubisky is the incumbent starter but he’s struggled in his three seasons with the Chicago Bears so far. Last season was practically a disaster for him. Yes, not all of it was his fault, but some of it was. He had trouble with his throwing mechanics, trouble with reading defenses, and trouble with accuracy, especially on deep throws.

The Bears brought in Nick Foles to push and compete with Trubisky. Some even expected him to beat out  Trubisky and lead the offense.

With all the preseason games canceled, the job of unseating Trubisky got more difficult. Trubisky needs to really look bad in training camp in order for him to lose the starting job. He won’t do that. Where he has a lot of trouble is when he is in a game and has to make decisions with defenders coming after him. No one will be doing that in camp.

Trubisky has the advantage of already working with most of the receivers. Additionally, he’s worked with the new receivers. With the pandemic restrictions earlier in the season, Foles wasn’t able to buy a home in the Chicago area until just recently.

An advantage that Foles has is his knowledge of Nagy’s offensive system. Foles worked it gloriously in 2017, coming off the bench to lead the Philadelphia Eagles to a Super Bowl win and winning the Super Bowl MVP in the process. He worked with Nagy there and with the Kansas City Chiefs. Furthermore, he has experience working with the new coaches, offensive coordinator Bill Lazor and quarterbacks coach John DeFilippo.

Foles knows how to work the offense. He knows where the ball needs to be put and he does a good job of getting it there quickly.

While Trubisky likely wins the battle and starts Week 1, the competition will continue on in the regular season. With his past struggles, Nagy will have a short leash on him. Contrary to the past two seasons, the coach has a backup he trusts to lead this offense. Chase Daniel was never going to push for the starting job. Foles can and if Trubisky starts off slow, Nagy will pull the trigger on a change.